Kiln setter for rearing of tableware



I q I v u $2 9 I 1936 c. F. GEIGER AL a KILN SETTER FDR HEARING OFTABLEWARE Filed NOV. 9, 1954 I NVEN TOR5 GHARLE$ F: GEIGER WILLIAM C.KEMPF ATTORNEY.

Patented Jan. 14, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE KILN SETTER FORBEARING OF TABLEWARE Vania Application November 9, 1934, Serial No.752,336

6 Claims.

This invention relates to an improvement in kiln setters intended forthe support of table ware or similar ceramic ware during the process ofglost firing, that is during the fixation o-f the glaze coating.

One of the principal objects of the invention is to provide a lightweight refractory setter unit or section which can be combined withsimilar units so that the assembly may be extended indefinitely inlength and also extended in height within reasonable limits. In the caseof a straight tunnel kiln the assembly of setter units is mounted ontrucks. In the case of a circular tunnel kiln, setter units areassembled 5 in groups on a rotatable table or platform.

It is desirable that the setter units or sections;

U should be provided with terminal connections and supports so that thefirst unit which is placed may be extended horizontally to form a basicgroup and that this group should be extended vertically by thesuperposition of one or more groups on the basic group. It is alsodesirable that the construction of each section or unit should be suchthat the ware to be glazed can be inserted or removed withoutdismantling the setter assembly or any of its sections.

To avoid marring the appearance of the ware the contact areas should besmall and should occur on such parts of the ceramic objects that theresulting scars shall be as inconspicuous as possible. Small contactpieces can be made (for insertion in large supporting members) of ahighly refractory material and may have the form of wedge-shaped membersadapted to support the weight of a ceramic article which contacts withtwo edges on respective wedge-shaped members. Point contacts can be usedfor the lateral support of the ceramic ware. The supporting members inthis last case may be called pins. The refractory edges and points ofthese supporting bodies are liable to become blunted by reason ofadhering ceramic material. It is desirable therefore that thewedge-shaped members and pins should be capable of easy insertion andremoval.

The means by which these various advantages are obtained in accordancewith the present invention are illustrated by means of the accompanyingdrawing in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of four sections of the setter, eachsection being designed to support a number of plates in approximatelyvertical position;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of one of the longitudinal tie piecesshown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a vertical section showing a plurality of the longitudinaltie pieces and taken in a plane indicated by III-III of Figure 1,- butshowing in addition a cover on which small ceramic objects can beplaced;

Figure 4 is a transverse section of one of the elements of Figures 1 and3;

Figure 5 is a view of one of the pins;

Figure 6 is a vertical section of a setter unit illustrating a modifiedform of tie piece;

Figure 7 is an enlarged view of a detail of Figure 6;

Figure 8 is a detail view illustrating a modified locking means employedwhere one of the plates which supports this tie piece is used as an endwall; and Figure 9 is a view similar to Figure 4 except that the fillerpost in the cylindrical opening is omitted.

Referring to the drawing in detail, a ceramic object 2 (such as a plate)is supported on its lower edge by means of replaceable wedgeshapedmembers 3 which are held while in use in slots in tie pieces 4. Anothermember 5 extends between two vertical walls I and l and carries a pin 6which serves for the lateral support of the plate 2 by means of a pointcontact on the back of the plate and near its upper edge.

Tie pieces of the type indicated by the reference character 4 aresupported by means of walls which may be partition walls! or end Wallsi. In the construction illustrated by means of Figures 1, 2, and 3 eachof the tie-pieces is square or rectangular in cross-section. Theterminal portions of the tie pieces 4 are cut away on planes diagonal tothe tie piece. The terminal portions of two oppositely extending tiepieces fit into each other within a partition Wall. Projections 8 areprovided on the ends of the tie pieces l. These projections contact withthe faces of the walls I or 1' and serve to prevent movement of theWalls away from the tie pieces.

The tie pieces 4 just described are made hollow by providing for examplea cylindrical air space which extends longitudinally through each tiepiece. Lightness of construction is thus combined with mechanicalstrength.

The members 5 are supported at their ends in pockets 9 provided on thesurfaces of the Walls between which they extend. These members 5 arealso made hollow and are provided with recesses into which the terminalportions of the pins 6 are inserted. Bars ill (see Figure 4) areinserted within the hollow members 5 to limit the inward movement of thepins 6. After a run in which ceramic ware has been glazed and after theremoval of the ware the members 5. are lifted out and turned over topermit the pins 6 to fall out. If the pins stick the bar I!) is removedand a tool is inserted through the opening H to knock out any pin 6which has stuck to its support.

It should be noted that the member 5 in a given setter unit is notequidistant from the lower tie pieces 4. The member 5 is placed closerto the rear tie piece (of the two tie pieces 4 in the lower portion ofthe section) so that plates can be easily inserted or removed from thefront side of the given section. On each of the trucks (used totransport the setter assembly through a straight tunnel kiln) sectionsare placed in pairs back to back so that ware can be easily inserted orremoved from either side of the truck.

In the case where straight tunnel kilns are employed for glazing theware the assembly of an interconnected group of setter units on one sideof a truck is performed by first placing all the lower units of a groupon suitable base members such as those indicated by the reference number13 in Figure 1. Four tie pieces 4 extend between the terminal walls ofeach section and pass through said walls, the lateral projections 8serving to interlock the tie pieces with the walls 1 or 1'. In the caseof the end walls 1 a short supplementary locking member I4 is shown.This supplementary member is shaped to fit snugly against the terminalcut away portion of a tie piece 4. The lateral projections l5 contactwith respective opposite sides of an end wall 1. After the lowest row ofa group of setter units has been placed in position, a second row ofsetter units is similarly placed on top of the first row, the weight ofthe second row serving to hold the first row still more firmly ininterconnected relation. The upper pair of tie pieces 4 (used to holdany unit of the lowest row) serve also as tie pieces for the second rowof setter units. The number of tie pieces used for the assembly is thuskept comparatively small in number. A third row of setter units can beplaced on top of the second row and other rows may be added as desiredwithin the limits permitted by the height of the kiln and by themechanical properties of the refractory material from which the setterunits are made.

- The wall sections I and 1 are provided with ledges l6 which increasethe area of contact between thewalls belonging respectively to a lowersection and to an upper section. These ledges l6 increase the rigidityof the assembly without adding appreciably to the weight.

The number of units or sections which are connected togetherlongitudinally in a given group will depend in practice on whether astraight tunnel kiln is used or whether a circular tunnel kiln is used,the possible number of interconnected units being greater in the formercase. In the latter case, where a circular tunnel kiln is used, theassembly of setter units is made on a rotatable platform. The units areconnected in groups whose length will depend on the curvature of thecircular tunnel, that is on the mean radius of the platform on which thesetter units are to be mounted.

In Figure 3 a cover I! is shown for an assembly of setter units. Thiscover is in the form of a light refractory plate which can be used 'ouslengths of tie pieces.

for the support of small ceramic objects I8 during the glazing process.

In the modification shown in Figures 6 and 7 tie pieces 4 having ageneral cylindrical shape are shown. These tie pieces are provided withsemicylindrical lateral projections 8 which are used in a manner similarto the projections 8 described above. The tie pieces 4 are also providedwith fiat surfaces l9 which prevent rotation of these tie pieces withinthe supporting walls.

The tie pieces 4 or 4' and the pin carriers 5 or 5' can be made of anysuitable refractory material. The projections 3 and the pins 6 (whichcome into contact with the ware being glazed) are made of a somewhatharder refractory material which will not stick appreciably to theceramic ware, such material being similar to that ordinarily used in themanufacture of contact pieces for table ware which is subjected to glostfiring.

The setter unit described in detail above has many advantages such as alow ratio of weight of setter structure to the Weight of the ware whichis supported. The same walls may be used at different distances byemploying vari- The ends of the tie pieces are well adapted for quicklyjoining a number of units end to end in sufficiently rigid relationship.

By limiting the number of units or sections which are joined end to endin a given series, the setter units can be assembled in a plurality ofgroups on a rotating table or platform of a circular tunnel kiln.

An assembly of setter units of the type indicated in Figure 1 can beused for rearing a series of plates of different sizes, the upper unitshaving the tie pieces differently spaced as compared with the lowerunits. The assembly is shown in Figure 3 as provided with a cover whichis used to support small ceramic articles such as cups, saucers, etc.

While a number of modifications may be made in the construction of ourkiln setter and in the materials used in such construction, theinvention is defined by means of the following claims.

We claim:

1. A setter unit forming a skeleton structur for the rearing of ceramicware in glost firing,

said unit comprising two vertically disposedwalls, two tie piecesextending between said walls and carrying projecting edges forsupporting ceramic ware, a third member extending between said wallsabove said tie pieces and carrying a plurality of pins for the lateralsupport of said ceramic ware, and means on one or more of the tie piecesfor interlocking said walls with said tie pieces and holding the setterunit together.

2. A setter unit forming a skeleton structure for the rearing of tableware in glost firing, said unit comprising vertically disposed endwalls, a plurality of horizontally disposed members terminally supportedby said walls and carrying projecting edges for supporting the mainportion of the weight of the ware to be glazed, another horizontallydisposed member extending between said walls and carrying a plurality ofpins for the lateral support of said ware, one or more of saidhorizontally disposed members being cut away adjacent each end forinsertion through a hole in each of said walls and for engagement withmeans locking the ends of the horizontally disposed member to therespective walls.

3. A setter assembly forming a skeleton structure for the rearing oftable ware in glost firing, said structure comprising a series ofvertically disposed walls spaced apart to form a series of compartmentsfor holding ware, horizontally disposed members extending between saidwalls for supporting table ware by means of edge or point contacts, saidhorizontally disposed members being each cut away at one or both ends sothat corresponding members in consecutive compartments fit together inopenings in the wall to form continuous tie pieces for a plurality ofWalls, and locking projections extending laterally from said reducedends to interlock the walls with the tie pieces.

4. A light weight setter assembly for rearing table ware in glostfiring, said assembly comprising a plurality of vertically disposed thinrefractory plates adapted for building up supporting walls in successivesteps, a plurality of horizontally disposed tie pieces arranged in aplurality of horizontally disposed series in which each member of agiven series ties together two wall elements by means of oppositelydisposed lateral projections which contact with the outer surfaces ofthe wall elements so connected, the

terminal portion of a tie piece being cut away where it passes through awall opening of approximately the same transverse dimensions as a tiepiece so that the said tie piece interfits with an oppositely extendingtie piece, wedge- 5 shaped members projecting from said tie pieces andfurnishing refractory edges for supporting the weight of ceramicobjects, and a plurality of refractory pins for furnishing lateral pointsupport to said ceramic ware, said pins being loosely supported inhorizontally disposed members which have terminal support in pocketsprovided in consecutive wall elements.

5. The setter unit described in claim 1 in which the member carrying thepins is individually removable and in which the pins are loosely mountedin holes in said member so that the pins can be dropped out by therotation of said member when removed.

6. The setter assembly described in claim 4 in which the memberscarrying the pins are removably supported by projections on the wallsfrom which they can be lifted for turning the pins downwardly so thatthey fall from their supports.

CHARLES F. GEIGER. WILLIAM C. KEMPF.

